Lit door handle for a vehicle

ABSTRACT

A door handle apparatus for a vehicle is provided. The door handle includes a door handle body that is configured to be disposed at a door of the vehicle. A light source is mounted inside the door handle body. A light-transmitting member is located between the light source and the door handle body. The light-transmitting member is partially exposed to an exterior of the door handle body.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional application of U.S. application Ser.No. 13/071,942 filed Mar. 25, 2011, which claims priority to U.S.Provisional Application No. 61/407,808 filed Oct. 28, 2010, the entirecontents of each of which are hereby incorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

A lit door handle for a vehicle is provided. More particularly, a doorhandle is provided that includes a light source, such as an LED inside adoor handle body of a vehicle, and a light-transmitting member, such asclear resin, positioned between the light source and the door handlebody, and partially exposed to the door handle body.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Discussion of Background

It is known to include at least one LED in a door handle. Conventionaldoor handle lighting systems, such as those described in U.S. PatentApplication Publication No. 2010/0117381, light a back side of a doorhandle, so as to illuminate a car body side of the door handle. Otherconventional door handles, such as those described in U.S. PatentApplication Publication No. 2006/0282987, include LEDs that are locatedon a face of the door handle.

SUMMARY OF EXEMPLARY ASPECTS OF THE ADVANCEMENTS

In one aspect, a door handle apparatus for a vehicle is provided. Thedoor handle includes a door handle body that is configured to bedisposed at a door of the vehicle. A light source is mounted inside thedoor handle body. A light-transmitting member is located between thelight source and the door handle body. The light-transmitting member ispartially exposed to an exterior of the door handle body.

A door handle for a vehicle that includes an intelligent lighting systemthat provides continuous lighting is provided. The door handle includesa door handle body. The door handle body includes a first body memberand a second body member. The first body member and a second body memberare assembled together so as to define an interior space within the doorhandle. A light source is disposed within the interior space of the doorhandle body. At least one light transmission member extends from theinterior space of the door handle to an exterior surface of the doorhandle body so as to provide a continuous band of light along each of anupper and lower surface of the door handle.

In another aspect, a method for providing door lock status informationvia an intelligent lighting system that provides continuous lightingfrom a door handle is provided. The method includes transmitting a firstlight signal having a first color from a door handle when a userapproaches a vehicle and comes within a predetermined area such that akey fob carried by the vehicle owner is detected by a smart antenna inthe handle. When the user touches a smart sensor, a second light signalhaving a second color is transmitted from the door handle and all of thevehicle doors are unlocked. If the user does not get into the vehicleafter a predetermined period of time, a third light signal having athird color is transmitted from the door handle and all of the doors arelocked.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A more complete appreciation of the invention and many of the attendantadvantages thereof will be readily obtained as the same becomes betterunderstood by reference to the following detailed description whenconsidered in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIGS. 1A-1C illustrate various views of a door handle in accordance withan exemplary aspect of the disclosure;

FIGS. 2A and 2B illustrate exploded views the door handle in accordancewith an exemplary aspect of the disclosure;

FIG. 3A illustrates a side cut-away view of the door handle inaccordance with an exemplary aspect of the disclosure

FIG. 3B illustrates a top cut-away view of a door handle in accordancewith an exemplary aspect of the disclosure;

FIGS. 4A-4F illustrate cross sectional views along a cross-section ofthe door handle in accordance with several exemplary aspects of thedisclosure; and

FIGS. 5A-5D illustrate cross sectional views along the cross-section ofthe door handle in accordance with several further exemplary aspects ofthe disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Various kinds of key-less entry systems exist in the market. Somekeyless entry systems require activation (such as by pushing a button)by a user in order to unlock a door lock. Other types are able to unlocka door lock without an activation by a user since a wireless keydetector (“key fob”) recognizes an approaching user with the key fobwithin a predetermined area.

A smart entry system, as referred to herein may be one of the key-lessentry system which has a wireless key fob detector, a touch sensor, auser hand or grip detector and so on. The concept of this presentdisclosure can be applied to all kinds of key-less entry systemsincluding smart entry system for vehicles.

I. Hardware.

FIGS. 1A-1C illustrate various views of a door handle in accordance withan exemplary aspect of the disclosure. In particular, a door handle 100includes a first body member 110, which faces away from a vehicle body,and a second body member 120, which faces a vehicle body. The secondbody member 120 can also be understood as being located on the “working”side of the door handle, as the second body member 120 is typicallygrasped by a vehicle passenger to actuate the handle.

FIGS. 2A and 2B illustrate exploded views the door handle in accordancewith an exemplary aspect of the disclosure. As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B,the door handle 100 includes a smart antenna 200, which is used as partof a smart entry system. The door handle 100 further includes an LEDboard 310 that includes a plurality of LEDs 320. The LEDs may alltransmit the same color, or each may transmit different colors from eachother. The light emitted from the LEDs 320 is transmitted through thetop and bottom surfaces the first body member 110 via the transmissionelements 130 and 140. The transmission elements 130 and 140 can be clearresin elements that are made of for example, acrylic or polycarbonate.As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the transmission elements 130 and 140 areeach long, continuous members that extend lengthwise along the doorhandle 100. Thus, unlike a configuration in which single LEDs areprovided to provide single points of light, the transmission elements130 and 140 are able to provide an uninterrupted, continuous band oflight along the length of both the upper and lower portions of the doorhandle 100.

FIG. 3A illustrates a side cut-away view of the door handle 100, andFIG. 3B illustrates a top cut-away view of the door handle 100. As shownin FIG. 3B, the door handle 110 is able to accommodate a wire harness330 and an electronic circuit board 340. As discussed in greater detailbelow, the inclusion of the wire harness 330 and the electronic circuitboard 340 in a single package with the smart antenna 200 allows the doorhandle to perform various lighting operations.

FIGS. 4A-4F illustrate cross sectional views along a cross-section ofthe door handle in accordance with several exemplary aspects of thedisclosure. The door handles illustrated in FIGS. 4A-4F are designedsuch that the first and second transmission elements and the first andsecond body members of the door handle can be assembled in a watertightmanner without any gaps.

FIG. 4A shows a cross-sectional view of the door handle 100 taken alongthe line A-A in FIG. 1A. The transmission element 130 is exposed to atop surface of the door handle 100, and the transmission element 140 isexposed to a bottom surface of the door handle 140. Each of thetransmission elements 130 and 140 are in direct contact with both thefirst body member 110 and the second body member 120. As shown in FIG.4A, the LED board 310 acts as a locater that locates the transmissionelements 130 and 140 within the door handle 100. In particular, thetransmission member 130 is pushed up into place within the first bodymember 110 by a top portion of the LED board 310. Likewise, thetransmission member 140 is pushed down into the first body member 110 bya bottom portion of the LED board 310. In this manner, the LED Board 310causes the transmission elements 130 and 140 as well as the first andsecond body members 110 and 120 to fit together in a snug fashionwithout gaps. Thus, in this example, the LED Board 130 has the dualfunctions of supporting the LEDs 320 and also locating the transmissionmembers 130 and 140 in the door handle 100.

FIG. 4B shows a cross-section of a door handle 100 a that includes afirst body member 110 a, a second body member 120 a, a smart antenna 200a, an LED board 310 a, at least one LED 320 a, a transmission element130 a and a transmission element 140 a. The embodiment in FIG. 4Bdiffers from the embodiment in FIG. 4A in that the transmission elements130 a and 140 a do not make direct contact with the second body member120 a. In this configuration, the location of the transmission elements130 a and 140 a is handled by the location and size of the LED board310, and is not affected by the location of the second body member 120a. Therefore, existing manufacturing techniques, which do notincorporate the transmission elements 130 a and 140 a, can be used so asto locate the first and second body members 110 and 120 relative to eachother in a gap-free manner. In other words, the incorporation of thetransmission elements 130 a and 140 a does not become a source of errorin the manufacturing process with respect to the location of the firstand second body members 110 and 120. Thus, the number of parts that mustbe manufactured with tight tolerances can be reduced. As a result, it iseasier to control the overall tolerances during manufacture of the 100a, which can reduce the appearance of a gap between the first bodymember 110 a and the second body member 120 a.

FIG. 4C shows a cross-section of a door handle 100 b that includes afirst body member 110 b, a second body member 120 b, a smart antenna 200b, an LED board 310 b, at least one LED 320 b, a transmission element130 b and a transmission element 140 b. The embodiment in FIG. 4Cdiffers from the previous embodiments in that the transmission elements130 b and 140 b are secured to the first body member 110 b by ultrasonicwelding at locations 132 b and 142 b. This configuration further reducesthe need for tight tolerances in manufacturing, as neither of the secondbody member or the LED board 310 b are used to locate the transmissionelements 130 b and 140 b.

FIG. 4D shows a cross-section of a door handle 100 c that includes afirst body member 110 c, a second body member 120 c, a smart antenna 200c, an LED board 310 c, at least one LED 320 c, a transmission element130 c and a transmission element 140 c. The embodiment in FIG. 4Ddiffers from the previous embodiments in that the transmission elements130 b and 140 b are secured to each of the first body member 110 c, thesecond body member 120 c, and the a circuit board 210 c of the smartantenna 200 c, but are not in direct contact with the LED board 310 c.In particular, the circuit board 210 c includes stops 212 c that locatethe transmission elements 130 b and 140 b within the door handle 100 c.This configuration allows for more flexibility in the placement of theLED board 310 c within the door handle 100 c.

FIG. 4E shows a cross-section of a door handle 100 d that includes afirst body member 110 d, a second body member 120 d, a smart antenna 200d, an LED board 310 d, at least one LED 320 d, a transmission element130 d and a transmission element 140 d. The embodiment in FIG. 4Ediffers from the previous embodiments in that the transmission elements130 d and 140 d are secured to the first body member 110 d by snap-fitat locations 132 d and 142 d. This configuration further reduces theneed for tight tolerances in manufacturing, as neither of the secondbody member 102 d or the LED board 310 d are used to locate thetransmission elements 130 d and 140 d.

FIG. 4F shows a cross-section of a door handle 100 e that includes afirst body member 110 e, a second body member 120 e, a smart antenna 200e, an LED board 310 e, at least one LED 320 e, a transmission element130 e and a transmission element 140 e. The embodiment in FIG. 4Fdiffers from the previous embodiments in that the transmission elements130 e and 140 e are secured to the second body member 120 e by a slantstopper at locations 132 e and 142 e. The slant angle of the slantstoppers creates stabilizing forces in both two directions, and therebyreduces the need for tight tolerances in manufacturing, as the LED board310 e is not used to locate the transmission elements 130 e and 140 e.

FIGS. 5A-5D illustrate cross sectional views of further embodiments ofthe present disclosure. The examples shown in FIGS. 5A-5D includewaterproof configurations, in which the smart antenna 200 is encased ina cover so as to become a waterproof antenna assembly 200′. Likewise,the LEDs and LED boards depicted in FIGS. 5A-5D are configured to bewaterproof in a manner that will be readily apparent to those havingskill in the art. FIG. 5A shows a cross-section of a door handle 100 gthat includes a first body member 110 g, a second body member 120 g, awaterproof smart antenna assembly 200′, an LED board 310 g, at least oneLED 320 g, and a single transmission element 150 g. The embodiment inFIG. 5A differs from the previous embodiments in that pluraltransmission elements are replaced by a single transmission element 150g that is sandwiched between the first body member 110 g and the secondbody member 120 g.

FIG. 5B shows a cross-section of a door handle 100 h that includes afirst body member 110 h, a second body member 120 h, a waterproof smartantenna assembly 200′, an LED board 310 h, at least one LED 320 h, atransmission element 130 h and a transmission element 140 h. The examplein FIG. 5B is the same as that shown in FIG. 4A, with the exception thatthe smart antenna 200 is replaced with a waterproof smart antennaassembly 200′. In particular, the LED Board 310 h has the dual functionsof supporting the LEDs 320 h and also locating the transmission members130 h and 140 h in the door handle 100 h.

FIG. 5C shows a cross-section of a door handle 100 j that includes afirst body member 110 j, a second body member 120 j, a smart antenna200, an LED board 310 j, at least one LED 320 j, a transmission element130 j and a transmission element 140 j. The embodiment in FIG. 5Cdiffers from the previous embodiments in that the LED board 10 j and theLED 320 j are integrated with the waterproof smart antenna assembly200′. In this example, the waterproof smart antenna assembly 200′includes stops 212′j that locate the transmission elements 130 j and 140j within the door handle 100 j.

FIG. 5D shows a cross-section of a door handle 100 i that includes afirst body member 110 i, a second body member 120 i, an LED board 310 i,at least one LED 320 i, a transmission element 130 i and a transmissionelement 140 i. The embodiment in FIG. 5D differs from the previousembodiments in that the door handle 100 i does not include a smartantenna 200.

II. System Operation.

As noted above, the door handle described herein can include LEDs thattransmit several different colors. This configuration allows a vehiclepassenger to gain valuable information as they approach a vehicle with akey fob that communicates with a smart antenna 200. For example a doorhandle can show a welcome status with a white light, a lock status witha red light, and unlock status with a green light. When all of the doorsinclude the handles disclosed herein passengers easily understand whichdoor is locked or unlocked.

Basically, lighting control is achieved based on a “smart entry system”such as lighting duration. For example, in an initial state, there is nolighting. As a vehicle owner approaches a vehicle, and comes within apredetermined area such that a key fob carried by the vehicle owner isdetected by a smart antenna in the handle, a white light is transmittedfrom the handle. Once the vehicle owner touches a smart sensor, all ofthe vehicle doors unlock, and the handle lights up green. Once thevehicle owner and the vehicle passengers get into the vehicle, thehandle lighting turns off.

In another example, as a vehicle owner approaches a vehicle, and comeswithin a predetermined area such that a key fob carried by the vehicleowner is detected by a smart antenna in the handle, a white light istransmitted from the handle. Once the vehicle owner touches a smartsensor, all of the vehicle doors unlock, and the handle lights up green.In this example, if the owner does not get into the vehicle after apredetermined period of time, all of the doors lock, and the vehiclehandle lights red.

In another example, when the vehicle owner exits the vehicle, thevehicle handle lights up white. Once all of the doors are locked, thedoor handle lights up red. When the vehicle owner passes a predetermineddistance away from the vehicle, such that the smart antenna no longerdetects a key fob carried by the vehicle owner, the handle light turnsoff.

In another example, in an initial state, there is no lighting. As avehicle owner approaches a vehicle, and comes within a predeterminedarea such that a key fob carried by the vehicle owner is detected by asmart antenna in the handle, a white light is transmitted from thehandle. Once the vehicle owner touches a smart sensor, all of thevehicle doors unlock, and the handle lights up green. After apredetermined period of time (i.e. five seconds) the handle light turnswhite. Once the vehicle owner and the vehicle passengers get into thevehicle, the handle lighting turns off

In another example, in an initial state, there is no lighting. As avehicle owner approaches a vehicle, and comes within a predeterminedarea such that a key fob carried by the vehicle owner is detected by asmart antenna in the handle, a white light is transmitted from thehandle. Once the vehicle owner touches a smart sensor, only the driver'sdoor is unlocked, the driver's handle lights up green, and all of theother vehicle doors light up with a white light. Once the vehicle ownergets into the vehicle, the handle lighting turns off.

Obviously, numerous modifications and variations of the presentinvention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is thereforeto be understood that within the scope of the appended claims, theinvention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically describedherein.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A method for providing door lock statusinformation via an intelligent lighting system that provides continuouslighting from a door handle, the method comprising: transmitting a firstlight signal having a first color from a door handle when a key fobcomes within a predetermined area and is detected by a smart antenna inthe door handle; transmitting a second light signal having a secondcolor from the door handle and causing all doors of the vehicle tounlock when a smart sensor on the door handle is activated; andtransmitting a third light signal having a third color from the doorhandle and causing all of the doors to lock if the vehicle is notentered after a predetermined period of time, wherein the first lightsignal, the second light signal, and the third light signal are eachtransmitted from a light source of the door handle along a firstdirection that extends from the light source and along a seconddirection which extends from the light source in a second directionwhich is opposite to the first direction.
 2. The method of claim 1,further comprising: transmitting the first light signal when the vehicleis exited, and transmitting the third light signal when all of the doorsare locked after the vehicle is exited, and turning off the light sourcewhen the key fob leaves the predetermined area.